Book of Gardens 
21 
MLm, . 
PLANTING LIST FOR SUBURBAN PLACE 
ELIZABETH LEONARD STRANG, Landscape Architect 
TREES 
1. Be tula populifolia, 11 plants, groups 
2'-3' apart. Gray birch, small tree 
useful for effect of immediate height. . 
2. Acer Ginnala, 3 plants, specimens. 
Tartarian maple, small tree to 20', red 
stems and fruit. 
3. Salix pentandra, 6 plants, 4' apart. 
Laurel leaved willow, small tree, dark 
glo=sv foliage useful fcr quick screen.. 
SHRUBS 
4. Cornus mascula, 3 plants, 4' apart. 
Cornelian cherry, very early yellow 
flower, red fruit. 
5. Syringa vulgaris hybrids, 5 plants, 3' 
apart. Hybrid lilacs Marie LeGraye, 
single white; Michael Buchner, double 
lilac . 
6. Primus japonica rosea fl. pi., 4 plants, 
2J4' apart. Double pink flowering 
almond, good combination with the 
lilacs . 
7. Spiraea Van Houttei, 4 plants, 3' apart. 
Van Houtte’s spiraea, white flowers in 
May, drooping habit, faces down well. 
8. Exochorda grandiftora, 1 plant. Pearl 
bush, attractive white flowers in spring. 
Covered with luxuriant green very 
early, 2'-3'. 
9. Lonicera Morrowi, 7 plants, 3' apart. 
Japanese bush honeysuckle, white flow¬ 
ers. red fruit. Luxuriant green foliage, 
faces down well. 
10. Hypericum aureum, 1 plant, specimen. 
SHRUBS 
eight Height 
St. John's wort, large yellow flowers 
with prominent stamens in July and 
4'-6' August; dwarf. 2'-3' 
11. Viburnum dentatum, 3 plants. 4' apart. 
t Arrow-wood, inconspicuous white flow¬ 
s' ers, dark blue berries, dark crimson 
autumn foliage. Medium size, 2'-3'.. . 3'-4' ■ 
12. Viburnum cassinoides, 2 plants, 4' 
^ "6 apart. Withe rod, white flowers, ber¬ 
ries varied, rose, orange and blue, cov¬ 
ered with whitish bloom, 2'-3'.■ 3'-4' 
,, ,, 13. Rhus glabra, 3 plants, 2'-3' apart, close 
J ' 4 together. Smooth sumac, aecentuative 
form, and vivid red in autumn, 2'-3' 
or. 3'-4' 
3'-4' 14- Rhus aromatica, 14 plants, 2J4' apart. 
Fragrant dwarf sumac, leaves out late, 
small yellow blossom, vivid autumn 
red . 2' 
2>.y 15. Hamamelis virginiana, 3 plants, 4' apart. 
Witch hazel, large leaves, excellent 
green, small yellow flowers in Novem- - 
3'-4' ber . 3'-4' 
16. Viburnum opulus, 3 plants, 4' apart. 
High bush cranberry, white flowers, 
large red fruits in fall and early 
3'-4' winter . 3'-4' 
17. Berberis Thunbergii, 9 plants, 2 J / 2 ' 
apart. Japanese barberry, good facer, 
vivid autumn red, bushy, red berries 
3’-4' remain on the shrub all winter until 
pushed off by new leaves. 2'-3' 
PLANTING 
DECIDUOUS TREES 
AND SHRUBS 
General Principles of Arrangement 
and Specific Details of Varieties , 
Combinations and Groupings 
F OR an immediate effect under trying con¬ 
ditions of "soil, exposure and climate, de¬ 
ciduous plants are to be preferred to evergreens. 
In summer, they furnish luxuriant masses of 
green flowers, and fragrance; in autumn bril- 
. liant coloring and fruits; nor are they devoid 
of interest in winter, for vari-colored twigs 
and persistent fruits give as much cheer as the 
slower growing and doubly expensive conifers. 
The choice of deciduous material for winter 
effect is of more importance than is ordinarily 
supposed, because the texture of the twigs, 
whether coarse like the Physocarpus or fine 
and glossy like the Spircea Van Houttei, will 
make a vast difference in the aspect, particu¬ 
larly if it is impracticable to mingle evergreens 
with them. 
Having decided upon deciduous planting as 
the solution of a particular problem, the choice 
lies between trees and shrubs. The former are 
planted for shade, in avenues, as street trees, 
or in groups on the lawn; for the beauty of 
their flowers or foliage; for a utilitarian pur¬ 
pose like fruits or nuts; to blot out an un¬ 
pleasant outlook; or to form accents or high 
points in massed shrubbery. Sometimes they 
can be used effectively as isolated “specimens”, 
but this should be attempted cautiously. 
Shrub Arrangements 
Shrubs should be used in masses, though oc¬ 
casional specimens are appropriate, such as the 
lilacs flanking the entrance gate or the syringa 
at the house corner. In planting for mass 
effect two main types of arrangement are to be 
considered: 
There is the suburban place where the grass 
is clipped and consequently a definite bed line 
is required, and the shrubs present an unbroken 
line of green at one with the grass. Such 
planting needs very careful arrangement, due 
regard being paid to height, form, and texture 
of the mass, keeping the idea of bloom, fruit, 
or other items of individual interest subordi¬ 
nate to the effect as a whole. Of course, spot¬ 
ting of specimens about the lawn is to be 
avoided. It is desirable to maintain open 
stretches interspersed with occasional trees, and 
to screen the boundaries and service portions. 
However, mere barrenness should not be 
mistaken for apparent extent. The inner mar¬ 
gin of massed shrubs should be so varied in 
its contour that it shall half reveal, half con¬ 
ceal the ravishing glimpses which compel one 
to explore and classify the outlook spiritually; 
whereas a uniform border would actually make 
the place appear smaller because the entire 
vista would be perspected at a glance. 
In planning such a border it is necessary to 
draw a plan showing the shapes of the masses 
on the ground, and an elevation showing the 
heights or sky line. As a rule, the greatest 
thickness on the plan will have a correspond¬ 
ingly greater height in the elevation. Avoid 
monotony of form in plan and elevation alike. 
Pointed accents, picturesque Japanese forms, 
and low spreading types may give variety to 
the softly rounded masses. In many places 
these masses are high to shut out undesirable 
outlooks, in other parts low to frame pleasant 
views. It is not necessary that each part of the 
border shall be graded down in three heights, 
tall, medium and short, as is sometimes advo¬ 
cated. This tends to stiffness, but it is de¬ 
cidedly important that all leggy or ungainly 
plants shall be faced with smaller shrubs whose 
foliage grows closely down to the ground. 
Finally, having thus carefully selected and ar¬ 
ranged the plants according to form, some¬ 
thing attractive should be included for each 
season of the year, from the pussy willows and 
Cornus mas of early spring to the witch hazel 
of late autumn or the golden barked willows 
and hawthorne berries of winter. 
The second type of massed shrubbery plant¬ 
ing to be considered is on the country place 
where a high degree of polish is. neither neces¬ 
sary nor desirable. This affords a delightful 
opportunity of creating informal woodsy plan¬ 
tations of mingled trees and shrubs. If proper¬ 
ly done it need not be limited to wild sites, but 
may be introduced in suburban or large city 
places. However, it requires greater art in its 
execution than the first type, since the average 
gardener in his zeal to have everything tidy, 
spoils the hoped-for informality by sharp edges 
of turf and too much clipping. In this kind of 
planting the trees are set close together as they 
are found growing in nature, even though to do 
so hinders their best individual development. 
There is no attempt to have an unbroken wall 
of foliage, but the effect is more mixed, twiggy, 
and open, with deep shadows and leafy under¬ 
growth. No definite bed line is desirable, but 
this merging of turf with shnibbery is always 
a difficult problem to handle, since it entails 
endless labor in keeping grass and weeds away 
from the base of the shrubs. In the real coun¬ 
try the grass growing long will not look out 
of place, but in places where greater neatness 
is desirable, wild violets will luxuriantly clothe 
the bare soil, and quite choke out all unde¬ 
sirable undergrowth. 
Formal Uses 
Still a third way of using shrubs or small 
trees is in an architectural way in the formal 
garden. A close hedge of Lombardy poplars 
15 high may stand across the end as a screen, 
while at the sides are luxuriant green masses of 
honeysuckle and syringa, pruned back to en¬ 
courage a dense growth. In front of the pop¬ 
lars the fine textured Stephanandra and Spircea 
Van Houttei contribute to the garden’s frame 
of verdure, while the service entrances are al¬ 
most entirely concealed by arching privet. The 
flowering trees used as accents could be pink 
crabs or cherries, standard lilacs or snowballs, 
or specimen white dogwoods. The beds are 
edged by a low clipped hedge of Japanese 
barberry, with higher accents at the comers of 
Spircea Van Houttei . Both of these shrubs are 
very amenable to clipping. The former is much 
used in regions where box is not hardy, and 
where an evergreen edging is too .expensive 
or slow growing. 
